Archives For
House

We have listed our house for sale and one of the last things we needed to address was the kitchen floor. Any time we have tried to whiten the grout in our tile floors we’ve always headed to the hardware store to purchase one of the bleach like whitening pens. Well….we tried that to no avail.

Talking about cleaning products is not typical on this blog BUT what we found that actually worked was so good that I just had to stray from the typical and share with all my friends. So I hope y’all don’t mind, but this is good.So after asking my favorite teacher (also known as Miss Pinterest) I found the cheapest and most surprising solution. As easy as Baking soda + Hydrogen Peroxide.

I told you about this story in a previous post but I want to tell you all the details because it’s just that good.

When we were looking for a house in Nashville we weren’t sure if we were going to rent or buy. We honestly had no idea what kind of money we were going to have at the end of the transaction. We decided to look mainly at rentals because of our recent experience of being trapped in a house that had lost a large amount of its value and was surrounded by foreclosures and shortsales. And, let’s be real, we don’t know anything about Tennessee, we need time to look around.

So we looked at so many rentals. My favorite one was one that was half the size of our current house. It was precious, I loved everything about it. Unfortunately, it went under contract that same day.

We looked at many others but there was always something that turned one of us away. I would say, “too big.” He would say, “too far away.” And this went on and on and on. We finally came to one that was a great price for a beautiful house. It had a great backyard for the kids and was out in the boonies which made my lil country heart happy. We walked through with the owners and decided to sleep on it. The landlords were so sweet. The next morning we submitted our application. That night we were at the house to show the kids. In case the landlord was going to be showing the house to anybody else we decided to call and let them know we’re looking around the outside just to show the kids since we didn’t take them in the previous night. The landlords told us they’d be right over in twenty minutes and they’ll let us all walk through the house.

That was so kind of them! To drive all that way to let us in. We thanked them profusely. My lil three year old loved the emptiness and went crazy running around the inside and through the backyard. I took a bazillion photos so I could plan how to arrange furniture and such.

Two days later, hours before we were to leave town, the landlord called to say we’ve been declined. Though he did not say it was our family size we know beyond a shadow of a doubt that is why he turned us away. But to say that it was because of our family size when admit discrimination and be grounds for a lawsuit. We’re not those kind of people. But I have repented of the thoughts I did have.

Our hearts shattered. We had nowhere to live and no time left to find a house. We tried to see if we still had to sell our house. After a brief talk with a friend he told us there was no way out.

In the wee hours of the morning we both began heaving tears. Broken and feeling like we’d failed our family.

Then we prayed. We lowered ourselves and allowed Yahweh to lead us. We admitted that on our own we are helpless and hopeless. That if He wanted us there like we believed He did that He would make the paths straight.

Our hearts were softened and we got online to relook at all the houses we had been in that week. As we were looking at one in particular I saw something in the neighbors driveway. We decided to go back to that one. It was a Saturday so there was no possible way of getting a realtor to take us inside the house. Instead we went to the neighbors house. And sure enough what we saw in the driveway was indeed a large van. Complete with a gaggle of little feet stickers on the back window. The neighbors have seven children and they homeschool. A couple doors down? Homeschoolers. A couple more doors down? More homeschoolers. And not long after we moved in we discovered we had a mutual friend whom I adore with our next door neighbors!

What we thought we were missing out on when we were declined on the first house was Yahweh redirecting our steps to something better. And the price had just been lowered on the house. Something that was going to help us immensely. The downside? The inside of the house is yellow. Yes folks, yellow. And don’t tell me it’s cheery. You’re talking to a cool color person. But I am THANKFUL we have a house to live in! And they don’t mind a large family renting. Let me tell you, we’re going to keep that house nicer than we kept the one we were paying a mortgage on.

I’m so thankful Yahweh knows better than we do. So thankful that He was watching as we wept and prayed. Thankful that He is always taking care of us if we’re willing to follow Him.

Each step of this journey has been filled with eucharisteo. Sometimes it’s hard to see at first but there’s such a bigger picture. So now I will get accustomed to my temporary little yellow house. May it constantly remind me to rejoice in hope, be patient in affliction and constant in prayer.

[edited: When we moved in the majority of the house had been painted to a much more enjoyable color. There’s still a good portion of yellow but not like living inside a bottle of mustard anymore.]

We didn’t know where to move. To stay in South Carolina. To return to Ohio. To find land in North Carolina. We simply did not know where our next steps were supposed to be. I want to let you in on how we were able to know that Yahweh was leading us to Nashville. And how we fought the enemy, knowing that he doesn’t want us out there. This will be more of a timeline because I could write a book about every obstacle.

When listing our house we weren’t too enthusiastic knowing we were up against new builds. Five months earlier our realtor had encouraged us to short sale.

As I write this we are traveling to our next destination during this lifetime. About six weeks ago we were told to move to Franklin, TN as fast as we could for my husbands work. My love and I decided to give it a go. Any other time when we’ve been asked to move in the past six years was followed by laughter. We were planted in a run down, deserted neighborhood. There was no possible way our house was going to sell. We got in to a new build neighborhood right before the economy crashed. The name was Edemoor. What was supposed to have been 2200 homes turned into around 50. There were dangerously deep sinkholes along the roads. A 20 foot “grand canyon” in the empty lot across from us. Drug dealers and promiscuous teenagers. Random gun shots from drunk country boys sneaking into our backwoods. Moving was just not a possibility.

I started this project last year. I had the best of intentions to completely declutter my house. Why? Because I wanted to spend quality and a quantity of time with my children that I haven’t been able to give them before. I started out really well. Decluttered about 20 bags of clothes. Then….found out I was expecting.

Fast forward one year.

Sweet baby #6 had a safe arrival. I was anxious to get back to work and get the house to where I wanted it. I claim to be a minimalist but with a half dozen kids that can be hard. For Lent this year my eldest daughter asked me to give up Facebook. When I told her I would she was elated. And just like that I had loads of extra time on my hands. We took one room a day and wore ourselves out pitching and donating.